After War
by bloodstainedeverdark06
Summary: Marena’s family was killed by SOLDIER. She decides to join SOLDIER so she can stop them from killing anymore children’s parents. One day, she gets the Geostigma and is plunged into despair. Marena quits SOLDIER so she can go out and find a cure. CloudxOC
1. Prologue: Disease

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. I do however own the plot of this story and the characters who are not from Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. Yuna from Final Fantasy X and X-2 is included in this story, but I do not own her or the music mentioned. Thank you. Enjoy!

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**__**Prologue: Disease**_

"They had taken my parents and brother away... SOLDIER... I was angry, so I decided to become what I hated. Now, I could prevent the loss of other children's parents being taken away from them. One day, I found out I had the Geostigma disease, and I gave up all hope within me. I had let all the kids down because I quit SOLDIER. So now, as an ex-SOLDIER, I'm traveling and have decided to live in Midgar. Many people who live here have the Geostigma disease; especially, children. The Seventh Heaven Bar here in Midgar is owned by a woman named Tifa Lockhart and a man named Cloud Strife, an ex-SOLDIER. Cloud mostly handles the Strife Delivery Service while Tifa runs the bar. They also have an upstairs orphanage where they take care of the children that have lost their parents or have just been abandoned. Most of the orphans have... Geostigma..."

Diary Entry 1:  
Marena "Trent" McLowd


	2. Has Been

_**Chapter One: Has Been**_

Marena stood before the small crowd and waited for her music to start. This had been one of those days where the children had begged her to sing for them, so since she loved them so much, she couldn't refuse them anything. She considered the children her own, so as her music started she sang "1000 Words" by Yuna. When the song was over, Marena smiled slightly as the children rushed to her to compliment her.

"Good job, Miss!"

"Yeah..! You were great!"

"Sing again! Please!"

Marena smiles at them and says, "As much as I'd love to sing another song for you, I need to continue on my travels. Thank you for letting me sing Yuna's song to you."

"Wait! What's your name?" a little girl asks.

"It's Marena "Trent" McLowd. See ya around," she said.

Marena jumps on her bike and starts it up to leave. Before she can go, she feels a tug on her sleeve. Marena looks down to see the little girl that asked her name.

"Come to the Seventh Heaven Bar sometime, will you?" she asked.

"What's your name kid?" Marena asked.

"Marlene!" Marlene said.

"Maybe I'll check it out when I come back from Kalm. All right?" she said.

Marlene nods as Marena takes off toward Kalm.

Few hours later...

Marena pulls up to a mansion and parks her motorcycle beside the stairs as she gets off. Marena quietly walks up the stairs and kicks the door open, her guns pulled out and ready. The room was empty.

"Come out, Rufus!" she yelled.

A man with dark brown hair, with a little bit of white in it, steps out of a room wearing a black suit with a black tie and black gloves.

"It's good to see you... Marena," Rufus says.

"Shut up, Rufus. Let's end this quickly and painfully. Your existence disgusts me," Marena glares as she pumps her guns.

"How about we just talk about this first? You have no reason to hate me, Marena. You should hate Sephiroth," he says.

"I despise you both! Now die!" she yells.

"I don't think so little missy. Drop the guns and we won't shoot you," a voice behind her says.

"We..? So, you still hide behind your body guards, Rufus? Pathetic..!" Marena growls as she twirls the guns and drops them in their holsters.

She turns and faces two guns aimed at her head by a red head and a bald guy with sunglasses. Suddenly, the two men are unconscious on the floor, and Marena is standing with her hands on her hips with her head tilted back looking at Rufus. Mako blue eyes were staring him down, but they quickly move and look at the men filling the room from a door on the side pointing their handguns at her.

"Reno and Rude warned you, Marena. Now, you've made a mistake by underestimating my Turks," Rufus says.

"Still a coward, Rufus... You'll be seeing me again," Marena says maliciously.

Marena vanishes just as quickly as she came by jumping out the door, down to the bottom of the stairs, and landing gracefully on her motorcycle. The engine roars as Marena spins dirt in the attempt of a U-turn and speeds off toward Midgar again... A has-been-SOLDIER...


	3. A Disgrace

_**Chapter Two: A Disgrace**_

The sound of a motorcycle could be heard within twenty miles of Midgar, and Marena could be seen driving it. Four men are watching her from a cliff, and they suddenly ride their motorcycles down the side. Marena glances over her shoulder at them and squints her eyes to get a better look and sees they are Turks from Shinra. Marena smirks and pulls out her gun and turns, shooting directly at the fourth rider knocking him off his bike. She does the same thing to the third rider leaving only two, and it wasn't a challenge for her at all. They get closer and are now riding beside her, pointing their guns at her. She suddenly hits her brake, and her bike spins a few times before it goes straight again in the opposite direction of the Turks as she leads them away from Midgar and back toward Kalm. As soon as she is far enough away from Midgar, Marena turns her bike to the side and skids to a stop. The two men are still coming for her, and she speeds off toward them with her eyes narrowed. As she speeds off toward them, she pulls out two kodachis slicing the Turks' heads off. Marena doesn't look back as she puts her weapons away and goes back toward Midgar. Marena finally arrives in Midgar and parks in front of the Seventh Heaven Bar beside another motorcycle and turns the engine off. She stares up at the building and sees a light on in a window on the second floor. A person is standing at the window staring at her, and Marena chooses to ignore them and goes into the bar. There are a few people sitting at the tables, and a woman standing behind the bar drying a glass.

"What can I do for you, Miss? I'm Tifa," she says.

Marena sits down at the bar and says, "A glass of water, please. I'm also looking for a little girl. Marlene?"

Tifa says, "One glass of water coming up, and Marlene is in bed. She shouldn't get up, I'm sorry."

A glass of water is sat down in front of Marena and she takes a drink.

"That's alright I'll just leave her a note. She asked me to come here when I got back into Midgar, and I'd hate to disappoint her. Do you have a pen and paper?" Marena asks.

Tifa pulls out her notepad and pen ready to write. Marena has her write:

Dearest Marlene,

I came to see you like I promised. I'll probably never see you again, so I want you to be strong for me. Who knows, we may see each other in the future? My best wishes for you, little one.

Sincerely,

Marena

Tifa looks up at her and asks, "Are you sure you want to just leave a note? Why don't you just come back tomorrow?"

Marena finishes her water and stands up saying, "Because it will only make saying good bye harder for her. I don't want to see her cry. Thank you for the water, Tifa. Bye."

She drops two pieces of silver on the table and leaves. Tifa stares at the money, and then pockets it safely in her apron.

Marena gets on her bike and starts it up. She sneezes and flashes of the Jenova Project go through her head.

"I'm such a disgrace," she says, clutching to her right leg.


	4. For Marena

_**Chapter Three: For Marena**_

Marena goes back to her hotel room and grabs her knapsack, shoving her other set of clothes and boots into it. She opens the locker in the closet and pulls out her money and puts it in her bag as well. Marena sighs as she grabs a blanket from the closet and sets it in the top of her bag. She leaves her hotel room and goes to her motorcycle and puts her bag between the handle bar and the blanket on the seat. Marena returns her room keys, jumps on her bike, and heads out of Midgar. As she passes the Seventh Heaven Bar, she sees a man sitting on his motorcycle and gasps as she recognizes him from SOLDIER.

"Cloud..." she whispers to herself.

Marena seemed to have gone in slow motion as she passed him, but she soon turns her head away in time to see a barricade of men on motorcycles blocking her path. She quickly hits her brakes and does a U-turn. The men start to follow her, and as they pass the Seventh Heaven Bar, Cloud sees Marena's distressed face and takes off to help her. The men are Turks, and they start shooting at Marena.

"You'll never give up will you?" she says more to herself then the Turks.

They continue to shoot at her, and she gasps as she is shot in the right arm painfully, but thankfully it was just a flesh wound. Marena gasps again as her right leg hurts from the Geostigma, and her eyes close for a second. In that second, her hands slip off the handlebars, and her bikes turns on its left side, skidding across the ground. The blacktop burns and scrapes the skin off Marena's right arm, side, and leg before she comes to a complete stop. The men stop and get off their bikes, running toward her to get her. Marena kicks her bike away and quickly gets to her feet, ready to fight. The Turks surround Marena, and she stands there with blood dripping from the finger tips of her left hand and into a pool of blood which began to form beside her. Blood also drips from her right hand from the gun shot wound. Her whole left side is scraped and cut from skidding across the ground, and she had hit her head as well. Marena falls to her knees in pain, unable to stay on her injured legs. Her right leg pulsed from the Geostigma. She was losing a lot of blood, and she became lightheaded. The Turks close in on her pointing their guns at her, and suddenly, they stop. The sound of a motorcycle buzzed through the deserted street, and everyone turns to see Cloud coming toward them on his motorcycle.

"Let's go! We'll get her later!" yells the leader Turk.

They all jump on their bikes and speed off toward Cloud, passing him and leaving Midgar. Cloud stops beside Marena's bike and runs over to her, kneeling beside her.

"You're hurt badly, so let me help," Cloud says as he puts his arm around her and lifts her in his arms bridle style.

Cloud carries her to his bike and sets her on the seat, and he sits behind her grabbing her bag off her motorcycle and setting it in her lap.

"I'll come back for your motorcycle later. Just relax for now," he says as he takes off toward the Seventh Heaven Bar.

Marena nods and leans back against Cloud's chest.

Cloud thinks to him self, "I'll do this for her. For Marena..."


	5. Just A Memory

_**Chapter Four: Just a Memory**_

Cloud drives Marena back to the Seventh Heaven Bar and carries her inside after he turns off his bike. Tifa looks up from behind the bar and gasps.

"What happened to her, Cloud?" Tifa asks as she comes to his side.

"She was running from some Turks, and she lost control of her motorcycle and slid on her left side. She's got a flesh wound on her right arm and a slight concussion. I'm taking her to the spare room. She is in no condition to be moving on her own," Cloud says as he walks toward the stairs.

Marena sighs and says, "I can walk on my own, but you won't let me! Put me down now!"

Cloud ignores her and takes her to the spare room and lays her down on the bed. She sighs and lays there comfortably as Cloud sits in the chair beside the bed. Tifa comes in shortly with a bowl of water and a few washcloths, along with several bandages to help her.

"I'll dress her wounds while you wait outside, Cloud. Thanks for bringing her back here," Tifa says as she sets the stuff on the nightstand and Cloud stands up.

Cloud nods and says to Marena, "I'm going to go get your bike, Marena, so you won't have to worry about anyone stealing it."

Marena nods and says, "Be careful with my bike. The steering is a little busted up."

Cloud nods and leaves as Tifa begins to help Marena get undressed. When Tifa is done, Marena has fresh bandages on her whole left side and on her right arm where she was shot. Her Geostigma was already wrapped tightly, so Tifa didn't mess with it or ask her any questions about it.

"Thank you, Tifa. I promise as soon as I get better I'll leave, so you and Cloud can get back to your normal routines," Marena says.

Tifa helps Marena get dressed into some clean clothes from her bag and she says, "Don't worry about it, and you can stay as long as you like, Marena. No one ever uses this room unless Cloud says they can, so you're lucky. This used to be a girl named Aerith's room. Cloud was some-what fond of her and was devastated when she was killed by Sephiroth. Now, he delivers for a living and fixes motorcycles every once in a while. Hey, maybe he can fix the steering on your motorcycle if you like. He's cheap, trust me," Tifa explains.

Marena stares at her for a moment and says, "I'll think about asking him to take a look at it. I may not even bother with it if he doesn't want to. I think I'm just going to rest for now though."

Tifa nods and says, "It would probably be best for you to do so you can wake up in the morning for breakfast. If I don't wake you up for breakfast, then I'll get you up for lunch. Have a nice sleep, Marena."

Tifa heads to the door and Marena says, "Oh, Tifa? Would you mind letting Marlene know about what happened? I'm sure she'll want to see me again."

Tifa looks back at her and nods with a smile as she leaves shutting the door. After a few minutes of laying in the dark, her door opens, and Cloud sticks his head in.

"Your bike is parked behind mine with a lock on it. The key is in Tifa's key box downstairs. I labeled it, so you should be able to find it. Get some rest. You'll need it," Cloud says as he nods to her.

Marena nods and says, "Thank you for helping me, Cloud. If you hadn't come along, I might be in Shinra's hands now. Thank you for protecting me from them."

Cloud nods and says, "I won't ask why they were after you, but I'll need to know eventually."

Marena nods and Cloud shuts the door as he goes to his room, which is right next to Marena's new room. Marena sighs and pulls the covers over her as she lies on her back. Tears silently fill her eyes as the pain all over her body burns every nerve with each pulse. She had been overdoing herself lately, and it was going to get her seriously hurt; especially with the Geostigma fresh in her system. Marena closes her eyes and slowly drifts away to the land of dreams, where she is plagued with the same dream.

This dream had been in her mind for many months now. It would start out at the Forgotten Capital where she would be standing at the edge of a body of water. Someone once told her, that if someone close to you dies, they return to the Lifestream by passing either through water or air. Then she would see visions of a blonde man fighting three silver haired men. Then a red sheet would pass over her vision, and she would see the entire city of Midgar running from these summoned monsters, and an enormous monster would appear and attack them. A group of people had begun to fight the monster, and the blonde haired man appeared and defeated it. In the end of her dream, the blonde haired man fought a silver haired man with a long sword.

The blonde came out victorious, and the last thing she would remember hearing was: "I will not be just a memory."


	6. Once and for All

_**Chapter Five: Once and For All**_

Marena awoke the next morning to a gentle nudge against her cheek. Her eyes flutter open, and she sees piercing mako green eyes staring straight into her mako green eyes.

"Get out of my face, Cloud," she mumbles.

Cloud moves back and he says, "Its lunch time. We let you sleep, but Tifa needs to change your bandages again."

Marena nods and says, "Fine."

She sits up and flinches, holding her right leg in pain as the Geostigma acts up again.

"Are you alright?" Cloud asked her.

Marena nods and says, "Its nothing."

Cloud stares at her suspiciously, but decides to ignore it as Tifa walks in with new bandages.

"Alright, Cloud. I'm all set. Did you tell Marena about her bike?" Tifa asked as she set the stuff on the nightstand.

Cloud shakes his head and looks at Marena saying, "The steering was off, so I tightened it up a bit. It was too loose which is what was causing the handles to turn sharply when you let them go. Usually, the bike will stop on its own, but your bike was a little beaten up. It should drive well now. I smoothed out the scratches from your accident out of the metal, and I did a small amount of a paint job on it."

Marena blinks and says, "How much does this cost me?"

Cloud shakes his head and says, "I'm just charging you for the steering fix up. The rest was on the house. Plus, you can probably help Tifa around here if you feel the need to compensate. I'm leaving for another delivery job."

Marena and Tifa nod.

Tifa says, "Be safe. I'll be waiting."

Cloud nods and leaves as he takes one last glance at the two girls.

It was probably about two days later when Tifa received that phone call from a man named Reno.

(Marena's POV)

Cloud was still gone, and Tifa called Cloud's cell phone to tell him about the man named Reno. She even called a second time because Reno worried her and sounded a little strange. After that, a lot of strange things began to happen. The children which lived at the Seventh Heaven were missing, and Tifa and Marlene were attacked at the church Cloud lives in when he's not at the Bar. I had to stay behind because I still had a lot of healing to do. Cloud and Tifa were brought in unconscious that day by Reno and his partner Rude. I stayed in my room so I wouldn't get in the way, and I listened to Tifa and Cloud arguing about the children. Marlene had been kidnapped…

Finally, Tifa got Cloud to go, and she stayed at the bar to wait for him. A lot of things were happening, and Tifa and Cloud were keeping me out of the loop. I was tired of waiting for them to tell me what was happening.

I was the only one at the Seventh Heaven Bar, and I was staring out my window watching as people ran passed every for minutes. What was going on outside?

It had begun to rain, and my Geostigma was hurting even worse. Hours and hours went by, and I finally found the strength to get up out of bed. I went downstairs and found I was alone. I limped outside and saw my bike, still locked up with a nice paint job. I reminded myself to thank and pay Cloud later. Something in my heart was urging me to find everyone. I was standing under the awning above the steps.

The rain stops, so I limped all the way to where everyone was gathered around the old church. Cloud had just poured water over Denzel's head, and his Geostigma disappeared. I was shocked, but soon relieved to see Denzel laugh and be happy again. Everyone began to jump into the water and crowd around Cloud to get him to pay attention to them. Cloud suddenly looked away from them and stared off in one direction. I could have sworn I saw something pink, but it disappeared from my vision.

I looked back at Cloud, and he was smiling. I smiled to myself to see him smiling. Cloud then looked in my direction and motioned for me to come over to him. I nodded and walked into the water toward him, and once I was standing in front of him he smiled.

"Your Geostigma is gone now, Marena. You are free from the Jenova cells forever," Cloud said.

I looked down at my leg and gasped when I saw, he was right. My leg was no longer covered by the Geostigma, and I felt tears come to my eyes out of happiness. I gave Cloud a small hug, and he patted my back as I turned away from him and walked out of the water. I walked back to the Seventh Heaven and found my original clothes were lying in a corner of the room, clean and sewn back together.

I change into them and sigh. I was wearing long, black leather pants with a white belt, and black leather shirt with see-through long sleeves that widen out at the wrists. I had a white ribbon tied around my neck, and a white butterfly clip in my hair which was up in a high ponytail as usual. I slip my black leather boots on and tie a white ribbon around my mid-thigh like always. I put my bag over my shoulder and go into Cloud's room to search for any materia he might have.

I find a box full of materia, and I find the healing materia, so I take it and walk downstairs. I leave a note for Tifa and everyone to let them know what I was doing. I didn't want them to worry about my disappearance, and I also left money on the counter because Cloud had fixed my bike, and I hadn't repaid him. Walking outside, I unlock my bike, put my bag down and go. I was leaving to go back to Kalm where I could deal with Rufus Shinra once and for all.


	7. Staying

_**Chapter Six: Staying**_

(Marena's POV)

My bike ride to Kalm was long, and the healing materia I stole from Cloud had served its purpose, so I dispose of it for later if I need it. After I had stolen his materia, I felt a little bad because he was injured during his fight, but then again when I saw him at the pool of healing water, he was fine. I'll never understand the way Cloud is. Now, I must forget about Cloud, Tifa, and the children because I must concentrate on killing Rufus. I must have my revenge.

"You won't survive this time, Rufus Shinra," I tell myself.

(Normal POV)

Marena arrives at Rufus's mansion and rides into the trees to hide her bike to surprise them. There are five men guarding the outside and front door. They are easy to get rid of but hard to get rid of quietly. She turns her bike off soundlessly and sneaks toward the back of the mansion. There is one window and no back door, but guards stand by the window.

"Must be a trap door or something," Marena thinks to herself.

When she sees no one is paying attention, Marena jumps up and lands on top of the roof effortlessly and soundlessly. As light as she was on her feet, Marena carefully walked over the top of the building to the front of the building and waited for the perfect moment to strike. Once again no one is watching, so she lands on the porch soundlessly behind the five guards and silently slips through the door. No one was in the main room, so she quietly walks to the hallway, and at the end of the hallway two guards are standing there dosing off. Marena smirks as she walks into the hallway with her hips swaying, and her hair swishing behind her. The two men look at her in surprise as she walks near them.

"State your name, and why you're here," the right man says.

Marena smiles sweetly and says, "Rufus knows me, boys. Didn't you know he was expecting me? I was his friend after all, until I decided to kill him one day."

They gasp as they ready themselves to fight me, but in the blink of an eye they are laying unconscious on the wooden floor with bumps on their heads. Marena's face turns expressionless as she kicks the door open, and Rufus is sitting at his desk with Reno and Rude standing beside him with their arms crossed.

"I was expecting you, Marena. Did you get passed all of the guards without killing them, or did you just dispose of them, too?" Rufus asks.

Marena walks into the room, noting Tseng and Elena are standing opposite of Reno and Rude against the wall she had entered.

She stops in the middle of the room and says, "Actually, I just slipped passed them and knocked out the guys standing at your office door. Naturally, they didn't see it coming till I told them I was going to kill you."

Rufus stands and says, "Of course, but I prefer to fight in an open area. Let us move outside where we have more room to fight, shall we?"

Mako eyes glare deep into Rufus's soul, and Marena says, "Stop postponing the inevitable, Rufus. In the end you will be dead, and I will disappear."

Marena turns and walks out the door, not even acknowledging Tseng and Elena as she walks out down the hallway and outside. The men at the door jump in surprise to see Marena and are about to attack her, but when they see Rufus follow her out and hold up his hand, they stop and nod. They walk to open area in front of the house, and Marena stands at the farthest end away from the house while Rufus stands closest to the house.

Rufus pulls out his guns and says, "You don't have to do this, friend."

Marena glares and says, "I stopped being your friend the day you and your father decided to use the Lifestream as a power source and hired SOLDIER. You were destroying the planet and my family, and now you'll pay for it by dying!"

She disappears and reappears standing behind Rufus with a gun to his head.

"Game over," she says as she pulls the trigger.

Rufus was no longer standing there anymore, and he is kneeling off to the side with his gun pointed at her and he fires, but Marena moves to the side and shoots at him. He rolls to the side and gets behind a tree for cover, and Marena smirks as she stands there with her gun pointing at the tree.

"Coward... Do you really think you can hit me with your bullets?" Marena mocks him.

Reno and Rude pounce on top of Marena in a surprise attack, and before she can throw them off, Tseng has her gun out of her hands, and Elena has her hands tied together to keep her from punching. Reno and Rude tie her ankles together, and they all move away from her as Rufus slowly comes out from behind the tree and walks to her.

"I'm sorry I had to do this, Marena, but you leave me no choice. I have a company to run, and I will not allow you to destroy our chance to repent for the hardships we have caused for the people," Rufus says as he runs a hand through his white hair.

Marena looks up at him from her position on the ground and says, "You aren't going to repent for anything, Rufus! You'll just continue to take life when you rebuild Shinra. You are a lying bastard who only wants what is best for his company! I'll kill you one of these days, and I mean it, Rufus! You are no friend of mine!"

He sighs and says to the four Turks, "Escort her and her bike out of Kalm and leave her at the Forgotten Capital. Her bike is probably hidden among the trees, Rude."

They nod and Rude goes into the trees and comes back with a bike and sets it on the ground beside Marena. He then goes to the back of the building, and he drives the Shinra van around to the front and puts the bike in the back of it. Reno and Tseng carry Marena to the back of the van and put her in a seat, and Elena sits next to her to guard her along with Tseng. Reno and Rude ride up front and wave to Rufus.

"Make sure to knock her out before you leave her, or she'll try to get out and follow you back here. You know what to do, Reno," Rufus says as he enters the mansion again.

Reno takes off toward the Forgotten Capital, and Marena stares at her bike which is propped up against the wall separating her from the driver. After a few minutes, someone talks.

"You must have a deep hatred for Rufus, Marena to attack him when he is weak. We just finished a big battle," Tseng says.

Marena doesn't speak and Elena sighs and says, "I didn't agree with Rufus and his father either when they used the Lifestream for a source of power. They were stealing life from the planet and destroying it in the process."

"I just want him dead, and his company to go down with him," Marena says finally.

They stare at her with a sort of sad look, and finally they enter the Forgotten Capital.

Elena looks at her and says, "I'm sorry, Marena. Maybe we'll meet again."

With those words said, Elena injects Marena with a clear liquid which causes Marena to feel lightheaded, and then she faints onto Tseng's lap. Tseng lifts her up and carries her out of the van and to the edge of a pool of water. He lays her on the ground and unties her bonds and puts her bike near her, and then he hops back into the van and orders Reno to leave. Within minutes they are gone.

Next day...

Darkness was all Marena could see when she began to wake up, and she realized the darkness was the back of her eyelids. Her eyelids open, and she is staring up at white, glowing tree branches. She sits up quickly and looks around to find herself in the Forgotten Capital. Marena stands up quickly and looks at the body of water she is near. Memories come flooding back to her as tears fall down her face.

She turns to her bike at once and heads back to Midgar. When she arrives, everyone is in Tifa's bar drinking and having a good time. Marena walks in and looks at them, and they turn to her to greet her.

"Marena..! Come have a drink with us and celebrate Sephiroth's defeat!" Yuffie says.

"Come on, little missy! It won't hurt!" Barrett says.

Cloud looks at Marena and nods to her saying, "Come on. The fighting is over. Let's celebrate, Marena."

Marena smiles and says, "I'd love to, Cloud."

Everyone claps, and they give Marena a bottle of beer. She takes a drink, and everyone cheers for her. The night was slowly coming to an end, and the gang all left. Tifa, Cloud, and Marena cleaned up the mess. When they are finished, Tifa and Cloud make their way to the stairs, but Marena's voice stops them.

"Tifa..? Cloud..?" she calls, and they stop and look at her.

"Yes?" Tifa asks as Cloud waits expecting her to speak.

She looks at them and says, "I just wanted to tell you I would like to stay and live with you here. I can help Tifa with the bar, watch the kids, and even help you, Cloud with deliveries. I'm not any good at fixing bikes, but I can help by taking calls or something. Please, can I stay?"

Tifa looks at Cloud and he says, "It's not my bar. Tifa, you decide."

Tifa nods and looks at Marena with a smile and says, "You can stay, but I'll need you to watch the kids sometimes. You can answer the phone, too, and if you want, you can help me work the bar. Take it as a way to pay for your room and board, plus meals."

Marena smiles and says, "Thank you so much, Tifa. This means a lot to me, but I will have to make some trips to take care of my own business sometimes, if it is alright with you, Tifa."

Tifa nods and says, "Of course, but I'll need to know if you're leaving, so I can take over whatever job you are doing at the time."

Marena nods and says, "I appreciate you so much, Tifa. Will I be staying in the same room I have been staying in?"

"Yes," Cloud says before Tifa can answer.

Marena smiles and says, "Thank you for everything, Tifa and Cloud. Good night."

"Good night, Marena," Tifa says as she walks up the stairs.

Cloud nods to her and says, "Sleep well, and be ready to get up in the morning. You can go to work right away, Marena."

Marena nods and follows Cloud up the stairs and goes into her room as Cloud goes into his room. She lies on the bed and settles in for the night.

Marena smiles and thinks to herself, "I'm staying."

Cloud is laying in his own bed and room as he thinks, "I'm glad she's staying."


	8. Trent

_**Chapter Seven: Trent**_

All day long, Marena had answered phone calls for Cloud, and he went out to deliver the orders called in. Ever since Sephiroth was beaten, Cloud received over ten deliveries a day when he usually delivered once a day and stayed out long hours. The week passed on like this, and finally after a long day of delivering, Cloud comes into his office with a tired face and a slow walk.

"You received one more delivery, Cloud, but they said you could deliver it tomorrow since they called it in so late. So, how was the delivering?" Marena asked brightly as Cloud came in, and she moved out of his seat.

Cloud sits in his chair and says, "It went well. I earned a lot of money today, and it will help me buy some parts to fix up my bike and help Tifa fix up her dining area. Here's some money for you to go out and buy anything you need, Marena. Tomorrow you get the last half of the day off since it is the weekend."

Marena smiles and says, "Thanks, Cloud."

She walks to the door and stops saying, "Hey, Cloud?"

"Hum?" he mumbles as he looks at her.

"I... I don't really know you, so I was wondering if you would like to go on a bike ride with me on my half a day off tomorrow, if you have nothing to do." Marena asks.

Cloud looks down for a moment, and then looks back up at her saying, "Sure."

"Really?" she turns to look at him, and he nods.

"Yeah... We'll go out as soon as I get back from my last delivery for the day. I don't really know you either, so we can get to know each other tomorrow," Cloud says.

Marena smiles and leaves to her room saying, "Good night, Cloud."

"Good night, Marena," he says as he turns the light off and goes to bed as well.

Next day...

Marena wakes up, eats breakfast, and says a quick "hello" to everyone as she runs up to Cloud's office to answer a ringing phone.

She picks up the receiver and says, "Strife Delivery Service. You name it, we deliver it. My name is Marena."

A voice talks and she writes some things on a notepad and nods saying, "Yes. Thank you for calling."

She hangs up the phone and sits in Cloud's chair as she runs her hand through her hair. Cloud walks in a few minutes later as he stretches his arms and picks up the notepad with ease.

"This is today's new order, so what about the one from yesterday I was supposed to do, Marena?" he asks.

"Oh, its here," she says as she pulls out a slip of paper from a drawer and hands it to him saying, "They want it delivered first thing today, so you better hurry, Cloud."

Cloud nods and says, "See you this after noon. Call me if-"

Marena cuts him off, "If any new deliveries come in. I know, Cloud."

He smiles and leaves as he waves, and Marena smiles as she answers the phone for the second time and gets another delivery. It came near lunch time and Marena calls Cloud to give him another delivery.

"Cloud, you have another delivery. Toki from the repair shop needs you to deliver a part to the hospital in Kalm. I'm going out for a little while, so when you get back wait for me, alright?" Marena tells him.

Cloud says on the other end, "Alright. I got it. Don't forget to turn the phone line over to the answering machine, Marena."

Marena nods and says, "I know, Cloud. I'll see you later."

"Bye," he says and a click is heard.

Marena hangs up the phone and switches it over to the answering machine mode as she walks out of the office. She goes into her room and grabs her weapons which she places on her hips. She looks at a picture of her brother she kept in her tight shirt, and a memory plays through her head.

_A fifteen year old Marena is carrying her ten year old brother through the Forgotten Capital, and she stops at the edge of a body of water._

_Tear drops trickle down her cheeks as she says, "I'm sorry I couldn't save you, brother. I'm so sorry. Mother and father would be so disappointed if they had seen what happened. I didn't mean for it to happen like this, brother. If I had been there, SOLDIER would not have killed you like they killed our parents. They only wanted me, and they've destroyed my whole family in the process. I promise I'll live for you."_

_Marena walks into the water and comes to a decline in the water. She kisses her brother's forehead one last time, and a teardrop lands on his cheek._

_Her final words to his body as she lowers him into the water are, "I love you, Trent."_

Marena opens her eyes and her eyes become determined as she turns and goes downstairs.

"I'm going out, Tifa. Cloud knows, so I'll try to be back when he arrives," Marena says to Tifa and waves.

"Alright... Be safe," Tifa says as she hands a man a drink.

Marena goes to her bike and gets on as she starts it up. She speeds off toward Kalm again, but when she gets there, the mansion is empty, and there is a note on the door addressed to Marena.

Marena,

You are probably wondering where I went, but I will not tell you. Stop chasing after me, and forget about trying to kill me. Your hate for me will only get you killed. Don't make the mistake of trying to kill me again.

Farewell,

Rufus

Marena smashes the paper in her hands and says, "I will not give up, Rufus. You'll pay for everything you have done. You'll pay for taking the life from the Lifestream, and on my brother's grave I swear I will defeat you some day. I won't go back on my word."

She drops the note on the ground, jumps down on her bike, and speeds off to Midgar again. All the while she is thinking about her brother, and the day he died.

_Brother, I'm back! Where are you?!" Marena calls for her brother as she walks into their small apartment in Kalm._

_Marena freezes as she sees two men from SOLDIER standing over her brother's bloody body and they are smirking at each other._

_"He should have told us where his sister was and maybe we would have let him live."_

_"Oh well, we'll just have to wait till she gets here."_

_Marena yells angrily, "Get away from my brother!"_

_They turn but don't have time to react as Marena grabs their necks and squeezes._

_"You killed my brother... and now I will kill you!" she says as she throws them on the floor and pulls out her kodachis, stabbing them in their hearts._

_Marena forgets about them as she drops to her knees next to her brother and says, "Forgive me for not being here, Trent. I'm so sorry, brother!"_

_Trent's eyes open slightly and he says, "Don't be sad, sister. Live for me. Marena...."_

_His eyes turn foggy, and Marena's puts her hand over his eyes and closes them. Her tears fall on her brother's shirt as she holds his body close to her, the stab wounds in his stomach leaking blood on her white shirt and shorts._

Tears trickle down her chin, neck, and on the edge of the picture of her brother which was sticking out of her tight shirt.

"I miss you... Trent...." she whispers.


	9. Aerith's Church

_**Chapter Eight: Aerith's Church**_

Marena makes it back to the bar right when Cloud is stepping off his bike to go inside. She parks and looks up at him.

"Do you want to leave now, Cloud?" she asks.

Cloud nods and says, "Yeah, I'll just tell Tifa, so she doesn't worry."

Marena nods as Cloud goes inside the bar and comes back out moments later with three bottles of water.

"Here; Tifa gave these to me," Cloud says as he hands her a bottle and then gets on his bike, starting it.

Marena says, "Thanks. Lead the way, and I'll follow you, Cloud."

Cloud nods and they take off toward the outskirts of Midgar. They drive for an hour, and finally come to the edge of a cliff with a sword sticking in the ground. Marena and Cloud turn off their bikes and get off walking toward the sword.

They stop and Marena asks, "Why is this broadsword here, Cloud?"

Cloud puts his hands on top of the hilt of the sword and says, "One of my friends was killed, and I marked his grave with this broadsword. It's a memorial for him since I never found his body. This is where he was killed."

"What was his name, if you don't mind me asking, Cloud?" she asks.

Cloud looks out toward Midgar thoughtfully saying, "Zack... His name was Zack."

Marena's face turns emotionless as she remembers Zack from SOLDIER. He was in Cloud's group, and Marena was assigned in a different group which was also under Sephiroth's command.

Cloud looks down at the sword and says, "My father died when I was still young, and my mother was killed by Sephiroth after he went crazy. You were in SOLDIER at one time. I can tell by your eyes and your skill. What happened to your family?"

Marena looks at him and then looks at the sword saying, "I once had a family, when I was younger. My parents were killed when my brother and I were little, and they were killed by SOLDIER. I don't know why though."

She pauses so Cloud asks, "Why did you join SOLDIER then? Don't you hate them for what they did to your parents?"

"Yes, I do, but I have a good reason for joining, Cloud. You see, when I was fifteen and my brother ten, I was out looking for a job. I came home and found my brother covered in his own blood on the floor, and two men from SOLDIER standing over him talking about how he should have told them where I was. I killed the men from SOLDIER out of hate and vengeance. I ignored them and kneeled by my brother, and found he was still alive, but I knew he had a short time left on this planet. His last words were: live for me, Marena. I still don't know why they came back to get me. I thought they just wanted to kill my parents, but apparently there is more to it than I know.

"So, I joined SOLDIER under a different identity in hopes of preventing other children's parents from being killed. I even changed my hair style and wore contacts until I was injected with the Jenova cells, and my eyes turned color. I succeeded in evacuating people on the hit-list several times without SOLDIER finding out. They always knew someone was leaking information, but they didn't know it was me.

"Then I got Geostigma. I had heard everyone died from it, so I gave up and traveled till I got to Midgar. I changed my appearance to what I had looked like when my brother died, and I introduced myself to people under my true name. I was still wanted by Shinra for killing those two SOLDIER men. I didn't really care if I lived or died. All I wanted was to kill the man responsible for sending those SOLDIERs to kill my family: Rufus Shinra."

Cloud was looking at Marena the entire time and is surprised to see a tiny tear trickle down her cheek, and she quickly wipes it away.

"Now I'm here, trying to find a place for me in this world. I used to go from town to town and earn a living by being a body guard and singing on the streets. Sometimes if there was a group of children playing, I would start singing to them for free. Marlene met me when I was singing on the streets in Midgar, and I wouldn't be here if it weren't for her. By the way, who is her father?" Marena explains and asks.

Cloud looks at her and says, "The leader of Avalanche, which is Barret. He works on a friend's ship that is also in Avalanche. You saw some of them at the party, remember?"

Marena nods and says, "Yeah. Hey, let's go to the church, Cloud."

Cloud nods and they get on their bikes and leave toward Midgar again. They arrive at a church and turn off their bikes.

"Why is this place important to you, Cloud?" Marena asks as she gets off her bike.

Cloud gets off his bike and walks into the church with Marena following him as he says, "An old friend of mine used to take care of this place. Her name was Aerith. I met her one day in the city, and then I met her again when I fell through the roof of this church from the upper plate. I had just finished a battle where we destroyed one of the Shinra reactors, but the bridge we were on collapsed. I was with Tifa when that happened. I found my way back to them, but I had to protect Aerith. Well, Aerith kept a garden here, and I come by as much as I can to pay my respect to her through the flowers. People say flowers can't grow in Midgar, but they did here because of their connection to the Lifestream."

They are now standing in front of the flower garden with beautiful flowers of different colors. Marena smiles and takes a deep breath of air as she closes her eyes. Cloud pulls out the extra bottle of water and opens it. He pours the water all over the flowers and closes the lid when he's done. He throws the empty bottle into a nearby trashcan he kept here.

"I used to live here, after Aerith died, and I defeated Sephiroth the first time. Then Kadaj and his gang came and started messing everything up again. Now, we can finally live in peace for a while, but we'll still have to deal with monsters," Cloud says as he walks to the exit slowly.

"Cloud..?" Marena says and this causes Cloud to stop.

"Yeah?" he says looking back at her.

"Thanks," she says.

"For what..?" Cloud asks puzzled.

She turns and looks at him with a smile saying, "For lightening my spirits. I've been pretty sad lately because I can't stop thinking about my brother. I'm a twenty-three year old woman, and my brother would have been eighteen today if I had saved him."

Cloud looks at her sadly and says, "From what you told me, it seems you couldn't help not being at home. You went to find a job to help your brother and you survive, right? You were trying to take care of him. Isn't that all that matters?"

Marena smiles and says, " Now, I finally see I can do something better with my life. It's all because of you, Cloud."

Cloud gets a slight blush on his face and he turns saying, "Let's get back to the bar. Tifa might have supper ready for us."

Marena smiles and follows him out to the bikes, and they head back to Tifa's bar. When they arrive, Cloud and Marena are greeted by Marlene.

"Tifa told me to tell you to be ready for dinner when you got home!" Marlene says cheerfully as she hugs Cloud and Marena.

Cloud says, "Well, tell Tifa we'll be ready soon."

Marena nods and says, "I'm going to go take a shower then come down for supper."

Cloud nods and says, "Me, too."

Marlene looks at them funny and says, "There's only one bathroom. Are you going to take a shower together? Are you dating?"

Cloud and Marena blush furiously and say together, "No! I'll take mine last! I mean first! I mean..."

They look at each other and Cloud says, "You take one first, Marena."

Marena nods and looks at Marlene saying, "No, Marlene. Cloud and I are not dating, and no we are not taking a shower together. Go on and wash your face."

Marlene nods and runs off with a big smile on her face, giggling like a river. Marena and Cloud watch her run off and smile.

Marena looks at Cloud and says, "Thanks again, Cloud."

"For what?" he asks.

She walks up the steps saying, "For showing me Aerith's Church."


	10. Second Chance

_**Chapter Nine: Second Chance**_

"Has anyone seen Marena?" Cloud asks as he comes from downstairs.

He was just in his office but didn't find Marena there.

Tifa looks up from her notepad and says, "I haven't seen her since last night when she went to bed, Cloud. Why?"

Cloud says, "She wasn't in my office or her bedroom."

"Maybe she went out for fresh air," Marlene says as she takes a plate of food to a man who was waiting on his order.

Tifa shakes her head and says, "She's supposed to tell us if she's leaving so we don't worry about her. Maybe she did go though, so let's just wait a little, Cloud. She'll turn up."

Cloud nods and sits down at the bar as Marlene places a plate of breakfast in front of him, and he eats it silently.

A few hours later, Marena still did not show up, so Cloud says, "I'm leaving to look for her, Tifa. Answer the phone for me while I'm gone, okay?"

Tifa nods and says, "Be careful."

Cloud nods as he walks outside and gets on his bike. He takes off into the city and looks for Marena. After looking all over the city, Cloud finally decides to go to the outskirts to find her. Still, he did not find Marena.

"Where could she be?" Cloud asked himself in a little desperation.

Meanwhile, Marena is at the Forgotten Capital, fighting a man with dark brown hair which falls in his face to cover his eyes with a dark shadow. When his hair swings out of his face, one can see piercing green, cat-like eyes. He is wearing black leather pants and a tight black, leather shirt with the sleeves cut off like a muscle shirt and the bottom cut off to show his rock hard six pack. He fights with a double edged sword and a shield on his left arm the size of his arm itself. Marena fights with her set of Sais (think Electra), and she is dressed in her beautiful black and white outfit. Her hair is in a bun on her head and her eyes shine a brilliant mako blue like Cloud's eyes. Their weapons clash once again and Marena's face is full of anger, and the man's face is emotionless.

"Why do you seek to kill me?" Marena asks.

The man says, "All those who have known Sephiroth will perish."

They jump away from each other and Marena says, "I won't allow you to kill anymore! Prepare to die!"

Marena chants some words in a strange language and her Sais glow a blue color. She closes her eyes as she chants and the man watches with interest as Marena crosses the Sais over her chest in an 'X' shape. The Sais pulse as Marena's eyes shoot open. She thrusts her arms forward and a giant blue X shoots at the man. He jumps out of the way, but it turns and hits him. He coughs up blood and falls to one knee as Marena calls the X back to her and it fades.

The man laughs evilly and says, "Did you think you could kill me so easily?"

Marena's eyes narrow and she has no time to react as she is suddenly thrown back into a tree, her Sais falling out of her hands. She bounces off of the glowing tree and falls onto her stomach. As the man walks toward Marena, he reaches out for her and grabs her hair, lifting her to her knees. He forces her to look at him and he stares at her for several moments before he punches her hard in the stomach, causing blood to spit out of her mouth.

He laughs and says, "You're not giving up yet are you, Marena?"

Marena's look of shock turns angry as she pulls her legs around and knocks him off his feet, dropping her in the process. She does a triple back flip to put some distance between herself and the man and lands on a tree branch.

"You have no idea who you are dealing with," Marena says as she holds her hands out and her Sais slide into her grasp.

She leaps toward him and they engage in a battle of weapons again, and this continues for several minutes until one of Marena's Sais is knocked out of her hand and plants itself in a tree. She keeps her mind on the fight and defends herself with one Sai and finally it gets knocked out of her hand, too, and she gasps in shock as the man kicks her in the head, sending her into another glowing tree. Marena drops to her knees, but stands up quickly. Her head snaps up just in time to see a hand coming at her, and once again, she can't react as the hand grabs her throat. On instinct, Marena's hands grab the wrist of the man who has her by her throat, and he slowly lifts her off her feet as he laughs evilly.

"I'll have to admit, you are the first person who has been able to put up a fight for this long, Marena. It makes me wonder how Cloud and Tifa will fight me," he says.

She chokes out, "You won't lay a hand on either of them. I'll kill you before..."

His grip tightens around her throat and she punches his arm over and over again, trying to get his hand off of her neck so she can breathe.

He laughs as he pulls his sword back and says, "I'm tired of playing with you. I have others to kill. Goodbye, Marena."

He pulls his sword back and stops when he sees a smirk appear on Marena's face.

"What is so funny, woman?" he asks as he glares.

Marena barely chokes out, "It's over."

A sword is plunged through the man's back, and blood goes all over Marena. His grip loosens on her throat, and she is dropped to the ground as he lets her go.

"How?" he wonders, and turns to look at his attacker.

The sword is pulled out of his back and he coughs out blood as he sees Cloud.

"You picked the wrong girl to kill, Dante," Cloud says as he helps Marena stand.

Dante looks at them and says, "This isn't the last you have seen of me!"

He disappears in a blink of an eye, and Cloud sighs as he looks at Marena. She smiles at him and her eyes suddenly widen as she turns away from Cloud and kneels on the ground, puking the contents in her stomach out, along with a large amount of blood.

"Marena..! What's wrong?" Cloud asks as he watches her vomit.

Once Marena stops vomiting, she says, "He gave me a beating to my ribs and gut. I'll be fine, Cloud. Take me back to the bar, please."

"How did you get out here in the first place?" he asks her as he helps her stand.

She leans on him and says, "I don't know. I woke up here, and Dante was standing over me. He told me he wanted to play before he killed me."

Cloud nods and says, "I see. I parked my bike a little away from here. Can you walk, Marena?"

Marena nods and starts following Cloud, but her knees buckle and she falls forward, gasping as she grabs the back of Cloud's shirt.

Cloud turns and holds her in his arms and says, "Let me carry you."

She is about to object, but Cloud picks her up in his arms and carries her to his bike which is not far away. Cloud puts her on the bike and sits behind her as he turns on the bike and takes off.

"Thank you, Cloud," Marena says.

Cloud nods as he pulls his sunglasses on and they make their way back to Midgar. When they arrive at the bar, Cloud helps Marena walk into the bar, and they are greeted by a worried looking Tifa.

"Marena..! What happened to you! You're covered in blood and bruises!" Tifa says as she runs up to them and follows them upstairs.

Once Marena is lying in bed, she says, "I woke up in the Forgotten Capital this morning, and fought a man named Dante. Cloud came and saved me."

Tifa nods and says, "I see. You worried me. I thought you might have left."

Marena laughs lightly and says, "You don't have to worry about me, Tifa. I'll never leave forever. Unless I can't help it..."

Tifa smiles and says, "You should take a shower to get all the blood off of you. I'll wash your outfit."

Marena nods and Tifa helps her walk to the bathroom, and Cloud goes to the closet pulling out Marena's pajamas. He takes them to the bathroom and knocks.

Tifa answers and says, "Yes, Cloud?"

He hands her the pajamas and says, "You forgot these."

"Thanks," Tifa says as she grabs them and shuts the door.

Tifa helps Marena take her clothes off, and Marena gets in the warm bath water Tifa had made for her. She sighs and relaxes as the blood washes off of her body, and Tifa leaves with her dirty clothes. Marena closes her eyes and holds her breath as she goes under the water to wet her hair. She comes back up and takes a deep breath as the dirt washes off of her body. Marena washes her body and hair, and rinses off by dipping back under the water again. Water runs down her body as she stands and gets out of the bath tub. She dries off with a towel and puts her pajamas on, and then wraps the towel around her wet hair. She drains the water, and leaves the bathroom to go downstairs for food. Her energy returns to her with each step and she finally reaches the bottom of the steps. Her eyes look around the room to find everyone staring at her, and she blushes as she goes to the bar to eat the food Tifa had set for her. Marena eats silently and feels everyone staring at her still.

She growls and yells, "Stop staring at me! Got a problem?"  
Everyone turns away from her fuming form and return to their own business.

Tifa looks at Marena with concern and says, "Are you alright, Marena? You seem tense ever since you came back from the Forgotten Capital."

Marena sighs as she finishes her bite of food and says, "I'm fine."

She finishes all of her food quickly and goes upstairs still seeming tense. She bumps into Cloud on the way up and almost falls, but Cloud catches her in his arms.

"Whoa, Marena… slow down. What's wrong?" Cloud asks concerned.

She sighs and says, "Nothing is wrong. Why does everyone keep asking me?"

Cloud says, "Because you keep biting our heads off."

Marena looks up at him and says, "I am NOT biting people's heads off!"

He gives her an odd look and she sighs as she says, "Excuse me."

Brushing past him, Marena walks into her room and slams the door. She stands beside her bed and falls onto it on her back with a sigh. She stares at the ceiling for a while until she hears a knock at her door.

She sighs angrily and says, "Who is it?"

"Marena..?"

She sighs as she hears Tifa's voice on the other side of the door and says, "Yes?"

Tifa says, "Is there anything you need?"

"No, I'm fine. Go back to work, Tifa," Marena says impatiently.

Tifa sighs and says, "Alright. If you need anything, just call me."

Marena doesn't answer, and after a few moments Tifa's footsteps fade away down the hall and down stairs. Marena closes her eyes and sits up quickly as someone bursts into her room. Cloud is standing there with his hands at his sides and a determined look on his face.

"Not now, Cloud. I'm too tired," Marena says as she stares at him.

Cloud walks toward her and says, "Now is the perfect time."

He gets closer and closer to her and when he is standing less then a foot in front of her, she stands up and they are now face to face.

"I know you are upset about something, Marena. Tell me, please?" Cloud asks.

Marena sighs and says, "Dante is an old friend, nothing more. He has betrayed me."

Cloud's eyes widen and Marena walks away from him to the window.

"He was in my group of SOLDIER, and we were both under Sephiroth's orders just like you except we were in a different squad. He was sent off, and I was left to run our group. Dante was always jealous and hated Sephiroth for putting me in charge. When I left SOLDIER, it was the happiest day of Dante's life because he was given my position. He will always hold a grudge against Sephiroth and me, but I don't understand why he is attacking me now," Marena says as she looks out the window.

Cloud walks up to Marena and says, "I won't let him hurt you, Marena."

Her eyes widen and she looks at Cloud and says, "What do you mean?"

Cloud stares at the ground and says, "You are too important to me to lose you."

Marena is taken aback by Cloud's words and a small blush appears on her cheeks.

"Cloud..." she starts.

"I'll protect you with all I have. I want you to have a second chance in life," Cloud says in a compassionate voice as he looks up at Marena.

Marena looks at him and says, "Second chance?"

Cloud looks her in the eyes and says, "You're life was taken away from you by SOLDIER once, and I will not let Dante ruin your chance to start over. Everyone deserves a second chance in life. Even you, Marena..."

She says, "I've hurt so many people. Will my sins ever be forgiven, Cloud?"

Cloud smiles and says, "I know they can."

Marena thinks to herself as Cloud leaves the room, "So, I have a second chance..."


	11. Blind with Hate

_**Chapter Ten: Blind with Hate**_

Several weeks pass, and Marena has not seen any sign of Dante. Cloud and Marena usually meet after work is over and go out for a ride before supper and continue to get closer to each other. Marena learned all about what had happened to Cloud before she met him, and everything about what had happened after they had met when they had kept her out of the loop.

"So, Kadaj and his gang brought Sephiroth back?" Marena asks curiously.

"Yes, but I beat him and everyone else," Cloud says.

They are once again sitting in Aerith's church as they talk, and Marena looks down at her hands sadly.

"I almost wish I was there to see him. Even though Sephiroth betrayed us, I still wish I could see him to tell him how I feel. I hated him for what he did to so many people. I wasn't there to stop him..." Marena says as her fists clench and her eyes close.

Her eyes suddenly open as she feels something on her hand. Looking down, Cloud's hand is resting on her hand gently.

A blush creeps up her cheeks and Cloud says, "It's alright. I stopped him, Marena. You shouldn't blame yourself because you weren't there. Besides, I would rather you not go through the hardships I had to face when I fought Sephiroth."

After a few moments of uncomfortable silence for Marena, she pulls her hand away from Cloud as she stands.

"Lets head back to the bar now. I'm sure Tifa is waiting for us, Cloud," she says as she walks away from him and outside.

Cloud stands up and looks at the ground a little ashamed for touching her hand since she obviously felt uncomfortable by his gesture. He follows her and they drive back to the bar where they are greeted by Tifa and Marlene who are both cooking behind the bar.

"Hi, Cloud! Hi, Marena! Supper is almost ready! Tifa let me help!" Marlene says happily as she adds some veggies to the soup.

"I see. I hope it tastes good," Cloud says as he sits down at the bar as well as Marena who stares down at her hands.

Tifa glances at Marena and says, "What's wrong, Marena?"

Marena looks up as if she woke up and says, "Huh? Oh, nothing! I'm fine. I'm not feeling too well. Would you save a bowl for me for later?"

Tifa nods and says, "Sure."

Marlene sets a bowl of soup down in front of Cloud and says, "Now taste it and tell me how it is, and don't lie either!"

Cloud smiles and says, "Okay, I won't lie. I promise, Marlene."

Marena gets up and turns away from them.

As she walks up the stairs she hears from Cloud, "This taste great, Marlene!"

"Really?" she asks.

"Yeah!" he says.

"Thanks!" Marlene says as she blushes and gets her own bowl of soup as well as Tifa.

Marena goes into her room and gets clothes, then walks into the bathroom down the hall shutting the door. She turns the hot water on and pulls the nozzle up which turns the shower on. Marena undresses and lets her hair down from the bun as she steps into the hot water. As the steaming water streams down her body, Marena's hair becomes soaked and she puts shampoo in it. Massaging her hair, Marena keeps her eyes closed so the soap stays out of her mako blue eyes. When she stops massaging her hair, she tenses as she feels someone continue to massage her hair.

"Who are you?" she asks.

There is a chuckle behind her, and Marena takes a step forward knocking the plug onto the drain causing the tub to start filling with water.

"Don't move, Marena. I'm here to speak with you," a male voice says.

"While I'm taking shower..? If you don't leave, I'm going to cut your-" she begins, but she can't finish as he yanks her hair.

"Silence, child... You will listen to me, and do not interrupt. I want you and Cloud dead; along with your little friend Tifa. If you don't do as I say, the children will die," he says.

Marena's eyes widen and the man continues, "Bring Cloud, Tifa, and yourself to the Forgotten Capital, and I'll spare the children's' lives... But if you do not, they will die."

Marena's eyes glare at the wall and she turns to punch him, but he grabs both her wrists and pulls them behind her back. He pushes her to her knees and the water is to the point of almost overflowing now, and he pushes her head under the water. Marena holds her breath in, afraid that if she screamed she wouldn't have enough air and struggles to pull herself up, but the man holds her down. He pulls her up right after she let all her air out, unable to hold it any longer.

Whispering in her ear he says, "I'll see you soon, Marena."

She gasps for air on her hands and knees with her hair draped over her closed eyes, and she stands up slowly, knowing the man had disappeared already. She lets the rest of the shampoo rinse out of her hair as her hair moves out of her face because of the water.

"I'm sorry, Tifa and Cloud," Marena whispers as her hair is finally rinsed.

Marena washes her body and turns off the water, releasing the plug, and she steps out of the tub. As the water drains, Marena dries herself with the towel and puts her clothes on. She towel dries her hair and brushes it with Tifa's brush. Once she is finished, she bundles up her dirty clothes and dumps them in the hamper. She leaves the bathroom and walks downstairs, finding Tifa serving a man and woman. Marena sits down at the bar and Tifa comes walking behind the bar.

"Hi, Marena... Would you like that bowl of soup now?" Tifa asks as she gets some drinks for the couple she is serving.

Marena nods and says, "Yes. A glass of water, too, please."

Tifa nods and says, "Coming right up."

Tifa fills a glass with ice water and gives it to Marena, then takes the other two glasses to the couple waiting for her. Marena sips her water and rests her head on her hand. Tifa heats up a bowl which she had pulled out of the cooler and sets it in front of Marena with a spoon.

"Marlene will want to know if you liked. She's in bed now, and Cloud is upstairs. As soon as these last two customers leave, I'm closing up, so please eat," Tifa says kindly.

Marena nods and eats the soup and her eyes light up a little and she says, "I'll be sure to tell Marlene her soup is delicious."

Tifa giggles and continues to cook some food which she takes over to the couple. The couple thank her and eat slowly as they talk and laugh. Tifa turns her open sign off and waits for the couple to finish eating. When they are done, they pay her and leave her the change for a tip.

"Thank you and come again," Tifa says sweetly to the man and woman.

They nod and leave, so Tifa cleans up the dirty plates and washes dishes. When Marena finishes, Tifa sweeps the bowl and spoon out from under Marena's nose to wash them. Marena finishes up her glass of water and sets it down for Tifa to clean.

"Thanks, Tifa. I'll see you tomorrow morning," Marena says as she stands and walks to the stairs silently.

Tifa looks after her and says, "Marena? Are you sure there isn't anything wrong?"

Marena looks back at Tifa and says, "I'll be alright, Tifa. Please don't worry for me."

Tifa nods and says, "Okay. If you need anything, I'm here for you."

"Thanks," Marena says as she continues up the stairs to her room.

Sitting on her bed in her night clothes, Marena stares at her hands which rest in her lap. She sighs and her fists clench.

"What do you want?" she speaks to the shadow by her window.

"You may not remember me, Marena. I am Vincent. I worked for the Turks a long time ago," the man says as he steps out of the shadows to reveal his red form.

"I remember you, Vincent. How are you fairing?" Marena asks as she keeps her back to him and unclenches her fists.

"I'm fairing well, but you seem to be upset. I've been watching you and Cloud. Cloud has a hard past and is not easy to speak to sometimes, but you have changed him. Cloud no longer locks himself in his room unless he wants alone time, and he smiles a lot more often then he has smiled in a long time," Vincent claims to her.

Marena turns on her bed and says, "Why do you say this, Vincent?"

Vincent grins behind his collar and says, "You knew love only once in your life, when you lived with your parents and your brother. When they died, you forgot what it was like to love, and you began to hate and malice claimed your heart. Cloud used to be overwhelmed with an undying sadness which consumed his heart as well. You both have changed over these few months of friendship. Will you let Dante ruin your friendship?"

Marena stares at him, and her eyes become sad as he says these things to her.

"Dante will die before he has the chance to hurt anyone else," Marena says.

"Your heart is no longer pure hate, Marena. You have a tiny shimmer of love in your heart. Love for children, love for your friends, and love for Cloud has filled a hole in your heart, Marena. Can you not see it? Are you blind with hate?" Vincent asks.

Marena stares at him with a lost expression and she blinks. Vincent disappears in the second she blinks, and Marena is left alone in the darkness.

Marena looks at her bed and asks her self, "Blind with hate?"


	12. Changed

_**Chapter Eleven: Changed**_

The world of dreams slowly drifts Marena off into its dark depths, and time passes quickly for her, almost too quickly. Morning came just as fast as the night had come, and Marena's eyes slowly open when light pours in through her window blinding her. She sighs tiredly as she sits up and stares at her hands.

"Blind with hate.... Thus were the thoughts which haunted my sleep last night," Marena states to herself as she stands and changes into her day clothes.

She ties the white ribbon to her thigh and sighs as she walks over to the window where Vincent had been hiding last night.

"What should I do, Mom?" she asks herself.

A blinding white light passes over her eyes and she appears to be standing at the edge of a cliff which over looks Midgar.

"Why do you hate so much?" a voice asks.

Marena gasps and looks up at the sky, wondering who spoke.

"Talk to him. He'll know what to do, Marena," the voice says.

Marena feels a soft touch on her arm and she turns to see white hair, then her vision fades away and she finds herself standing in her room again.

"Strange… Was she my… mother?" Marena asks herself.

Shaking her head to clear it, though it doesn't help much, Marena walks out of her room and walks downstairs to eat breakfast. Cloud is sitting at the bar eating food, and Tifa is preparing food for the early rising customers which filled her room already.

"Good morning, Marena," Cloud says to her tiredly.

"Morning, Cloud..." Marena mumbles as she sits down and a plate of food appears in front of her as Tifa sets it down.

Marena eats slowly and Cloud stands saying, "I have some deliveries to make today. Call me if I have anymore to do, Marena. You know how to reach me."

Marena nods and says, "Alright…"

Cloud takes a glances at her and silently sighs to himself, leaving before he seemed strange just standing there tiredly.

"There's that look again…" Tifa says, sighing as she leans against the counter.

Marena finishes her food and says, "What look, Tifa?"

Tifa frowns and says, "You seem to have something on your mind. You're usually a little livelier in the mornings, and you barely spoke a word to Cloud. When you did speak to him, they were short replies and trailed off. When will you learn to trust us with your feelings, Marena?"

Sighing, Marena stands and walks toward the stairs saying, "Thank you for the food, Tifa. I'll see you at lunch."

As Marena disappears up the steps, Tifa sighs and says, "Stubborn, girl!"

A man with brown hair and green eyes walks into Seventh Heaven and sits at the bar. Tifa walks over to him, and he raises his hand before she can ask for his order.

"I'm looking for three people; mainly one whose name is Marena. Do you think you know her, Tifa?" the man asks her.

Tifa's eyes narrow at him as she hears the malice in the man's voice.

"Marena isn't here. I assume you found me, but as for the other one you search for… I don't know who it is you want…" Tifa says knowingly.

The man smirks and says, "Cloud must be out then. I will see to you first then, Tifa."

A flash of metal sparkles, and Tifa throws a serving tray at the blade which is coming toward her and jumps over the man. His sword is drawn and the serving tray lay on the floor split in half. As Tifa lands on her feet facing the back of Dante, the customers in the room stand and pull out their own weapons. Barrett, Yuffie, and Vincent stand facing Dante with their weapons ready. Dante smirks and turns to face them with his sword ready. He moves swiftly to Yuffie and knocks her out with a karate chop to her neck and kicks Barrett in the back of the head causing him to hit a table, passing out in the process. Vincent is quick enough though to dodge Dante's attempt to hit him in the forehead with the hilt of his sword and moves behind him with his gun pointed.

** POP, POP, POP**

Marena freezes as she is about to answer the ringing phone. Everything is quiet and she is unable to hear any movement from downstairs. A few children peer out their doors and into the hallway to see what is going on. Marena ushers them back to their rooms. Marena goes to her room and grabs her Sais, slowly walking down the stairs to check out the bar area. When she reaches the base, the first thing she sees is Yuffie, Barrett, and Vincent sprawled out over the floor unconscious. Then she looks to the door, finding a note pinned to it with a needle holding the note there. Marena quickly runs over to the note, pulls the needle out, and grabs the paper.

Reading, the note says:

_"Marena,_

_ If you do not bring Cloud to the Forgotten Capital by sundown, you will find Tifa's body no longer intact by the clear waters of the forest. Children will be next._

_ D."_

Marena did not have to guess to know who had left the note, and she clenches her teeth as she growls angrily to herself.

"Damn him! Err!" Marena growls…

"Damn… What the hell happened?" she hears Barrett ask.

She turns to him and sees he is sitting up, holding his bleeding head in pain. Yuffie now sits up, rubbing her neck with a pout gracing her lips.

Yuffie stands up and checks herself saying, "He better not have stolen any of my materia!"

Yuffie sighs in relief, seeing all of her materia is safely where they belong. Vincent is the last to come to as he props himself up on his elbows and coughs out blood. Their eyes land on Marena, and they stand up weakly.

"Where's Tifa?" Yuffie suddenly asks terrified.

They all look at Marena, and she says, "Dante has her. I have to call Cloud. Take care of your head, Barrett. Vincent, you must have some broken ribs. Don't overdue it."

Marena walks over to the bar and grabs the phone off the wall, dialing Cloud's cell phone number, and she waits for an answer.

"Hello?" says Cloud's voice.

"Cloud… It's me. Tifa's been kidnapped by Dante. Get to the bar as soon as you can, and we'll go out together to retrieve her back," Marena says with authority in her voice.

"I'll be there soon," Cloud replies.

The tone was the only thing Marena could hear after that, so she hangs up the phone and looks down at the dirty dishes in the sink. Marena quickly cleans the dishes and by the time she finishes, Cloud comes walking through the door, his face unhappy.

"Where has he taken her?" Cloud asks immediately.

Marena dries her hands and walks over to him saying, "Slow down, Cloud. Dante knocked these guys out, and then took Tifa to the Forgotten Capital. We leave now."

"We want to go, too!" Yuffie's annoying squeaking voice rings out.

Cloud sighs and says, "This is not your battle. This is between us. We'll tell you the result in the end. Let's go, Marena."

Marena didn't have to be told twice as she follows Cloud, leaving the three in the room staring after them.

"We'll have to hurry, Cloud. We have until sundown," Marena says as she mounts her bike as Cloud does his.

Cloud nods as he starts up his bike and takes off after Marena who was already starting off to the Forgotten Capital. On the way to their destination, they are surprise attacked by shadow summon monsters. Cloud whips out his buster sword and sweeps it at one causing it to poof away, but it reappears soon after. Marena sighs at the stupid summons and holds her right arm out to the side. Her hand gives off a black mist which floats around a few summonses, sucking them right out of existence. Surprised by this move Cloud is almost taken down by summons, but he swings his sword just in time to block it off. Marena smiles slightly at Cloud and raises her hand as more of the same mist floats out of her right hand. The mist puts a shield around her and Cloud, leaving small windows for them to see where they are going. Every time a summon leaps at them, they are sucked out of existence once again, and soon the summons stop appearing so Marena lowers her arm, the black mist floating back into her hand. Cloud nods at her and they soon arrive to the Forgotten Capital, being very cautious by going slow to keep their engines at a soft rumble. They finally stop their bikes and get off, going on foot so they have a better chance to defend themselves. They come to the water and Cloud gasps when he sees Tifa lying by the edge of the water with half her arm in the calm depths.

"Tifa..!" Cloud yells and runs to her.

"Cloud, no!" Marena yells at him taking a step forward.

About halfway to her, Cloud jumps in the air, flipping as a sword spins underneath him hitting a tree. He lands beside Tifa and lifts her head into his arms.

"Tifa..? Wake up, Tifa!" Cloud yells to her.

She moans a little and her eyes flutter open lightly as she says, "Cloud?"

Cloud says, "You need to get up, Tifa! We have to fight, Dante. Come on!"

Tifa sits up and holds a hand to her head saying, "Is that the name of the man who kidnapped me?"

Cloud nods and an evil laugh can be heard as a man steps out of the shadows, everyone knowing he is Dante.

"I'm glad you could finally make it, Cloud… Marena…" Dante says looking between the new arrivals.

Tifa and Cloud stand up, and Cloud draws his sword as Tifa pulls on her gloves which she had forgotten to wear when she fought Dante in the bar. Marena pulls out her Sais and twirls them in her hands, stopping as they point toward Dante menacingly.

"Are you ready?" Dante asks.

He disappears. Suddenly he appears standing by the tree with his sword stuck in it. He pulls it out swiftly and goes to attack Marena, but he moves before he strikes and goes to attack Cloud. Cloud is almost caught off guard and he stumbles back a bit, barely blocking Dante's sword.

"Be careful!" Marena yells at him.

Tifa moves away from Cloud and Dante, who are locked in a battle of swords, and stays prepared for a surprise attack. Just as Tifa predicted in the middle of Cloud's battle with Dante, shadow summon monsters appeared around her and she punched them away one by one. Marena sighs and holds her hand out, sucking the summons up in her black mist. They stop attacking Tifa and disappear.

"That trick will not work with me around, Dante," Marena says to him.

He grins and pushes Cloud back with his sword saying, "I guess I'll have to try something else then, won't I?"

Marena's eyes narrow as roots shoot up from the ground and wrap around Tifa's body. Tifa yelps as they hold her arms and legs down, and wrap around her waist and neck tightly. Cloud sees this and is distracted for one second, giving Dante an opening which he takes, and Dante swings his sword at Cloud's gut. Cloud moves back away from the attack but is still hit. Though the cut isn't deep, blood begins to soak his shirt and run down his stomach slowly. Marena watches as they continue fighting, and she sees her opening finally and leaps at Dante with lightning speed. She tackles him down and holds the Sais to his neck, and Dante grins evilly at her. Marena gasps as Dante pulls his feet up around Marena's neck and pulls her away with his legs. She uses her body to pull herself out of his legs and lands a little away from him, barely evading his sword which swipes across to slice her. Marena lands on her feet gracefully, and Dante doesn't waste any time by attacking her again making sure to trap Cloud the same way he trapped Tifa. Cloud's sword drops out of his hand as the roots squeeze his wrist painfully, and he pulls trying his hardest to escape the roots. Dante and Marena continue to fight for an entire hour, and by the end of the hour, they are both panting heavily.

"As good as ever, Marena… I am growing tired of this game. I think it is time you showed your true form to us," Dante says as he suddenly disappears.

Marena stands ready for an attack, but it never comes. All three of them stand alone, watching and waiting for Dante to surprise attack Marena. Suddenly, Dante appears leaving no time for Marena to even sense him and forces his sword into her back. Blood squirts out the front wound and sprays all over the ground and into the water they are standing next to. Marena's eyes widen as she feels the cold metal on her inner flesh, and blood drips onto the ground off the tip of Dante's blade. She looks down at the blade impaled through her back to her gut and coughs out blood. The blade pulses a dark purple color which spreads over Marena's entire body. Dante smiles evilly as he twists the sword within her, and Marena's screams are muffled by the blood rising in her throat again.

"Marena..!" Cloud and Tifa yell.

Marena drops to her knees and hands as Dante pulls his sword out of her back, and she wretches all over the ground covering it with the contents of her stomach and blood.

"Now, show your true form to us, Marena. Stop hiding behind that form," Dante orders her harshly.

Breathing hard, Marena chokes out, "No…"  
Dante kicks her in the side, sending her onto her back as she yelps in pain. His sword stops pulsing purple.

"Do as I tell you, sister, or I'll make sure your friends die slowly as you watch!" Dante once again orders her.

"Don't listen to him, Marena! You don't have to do anything!" Cloud yells to her.

"That's right! Don't worry about us!" Tifa yells.

Marena slowly looks up at Cloud and Tifa with blurry vision saying, "I'm sorry. I have no choice. It's not a big deal. Besides, if I do change, I will survive, and I can protect you."

Marena closes her eyes and her whole body glows light green with her aura, and she slowly begins to change. Her wounds close up and the blood disappears as well. After a flash of purple light, Marena now stands with a totally different look.

She is wearing black pants and her left leg has long white fabric covering it, and her right leg has short black fabric on it, stopping at mid-thigh. Also, a black shirt and the right arm have a long white sleeve and the left has a black short sleeve, and black boots up to her knees. Her eyes remained the same mako blue color, but her hair is now white and short and spiky with long bangs at the front going to her shoulders.

Cloud stares at Marena disbelievingly and says, "Marena… You've changed…"


	13. Epilogue: Beautifully Bitter

_**Epilogue: Beautifully Bitter**_

Marena's eyes are sad and a small frown flows over her soft pink lips. A few tears fall down her face as she looks at the water where she placed her brother's body long ago.

"This is who you really are, Marena. You are a demon sent from Hell to destroy everything around you. Now kill Cloud and Tifa. Show your power," Dante says evilly as he looks at Marena and spreads his arms out.

Marena whispers in a voice which does not sound the same as before, "I will... not let you use me anymore, Dante."

Dante's eyes widen and in an instant two Sais are plunged into his chest and blood splatters over Marena's face and neck. Dante stares at her, and his eyes slowly close.

"Why sister?" he wonders as he starts to fade.

Marena pulls the Sais out and steps aside saying, "You are not my brother."

Dante falls into the water and sinks to the bottom where his body will return to the Lifestream. Marena stares at the water and while she does, Cloud and Tifa's bonds disappear, and they stand there watching Marena.

"Marena..?" Tifa asks softly as she steps toward her.

"Ugh!" Marena grunts as she falls to her knees, her Sais dropping beside her.

Tears pour down her face and her fists clench the dirt beneath her fingers tightly. She slams her fists on the ground.

"Why! Why did you do this! Why? Why… It didn't have to end like this, Dante… You could have… I would have… WHY!?" she screams at the ground.

As if to reflect Marena's pain, the sky began to cry as well, and its tears poured down on them all. Tifa and Cloud slowly walk over to Marena, and Tifa places her hand on her shoulder and Cloud stands there looking at her.

"You don't have to fight it anymore, Marena. Let's go home," Tifa says gently.

Marena looks up at Tifa with tears filled in her eyes and running down her face, and Tifa stares back at her with a kind smile and her hand held out. Marena looks up at Cloud, and he nods at her with his hand held out.

"You mean you won't hate me for what I did? For whom I am now? My hideous soul..? You're not going to leave me?" Marena asks in despair.

Cloud says, "I will never leave you."

"We're here for you, Marena," Tifa says with a smile.

Marena stares at them and closes her eyes as she lets the rain wash away her tears, and she stands with a peaceful smile on her lips.

"I'm ready to go home," Marena says.

Tifa grins and says, "Good! Marlene will be glad to know you're safe."

Cloud graces them with a tiny smile and says, "And so will your family."

"Family?" she asks.

Tifa says, "Yes. Your family…They're waiting at the bar for us and for you. Yuffie, Cid, Barret, Marlene, and even Vincent… They're all waiting for you, Marena."

Marena closes her eyes and turns her face to the sky letting the rain wash off Dante's blood, and she looks back at them with a true smile.

"Then lets go," she says as she turns and goes to her motorcycle.

Tifa and Cloud go to Cloud's motorcycle and get on as they follow Marena back to Midgar. When they enter the bar, everyone is sitting around looking depressed.

Tifa says, "What's everyone looking so depressed about?"

They all look at them and stand up in surprise.

"You made it back!" Yuffie yells.

"Why wouldn't we?" Cloud asks.

"Who's that with you, guys? Where's Marena?" Marlene asks.

Marena steps forward and says, "Well, I am Marena. This is my true form, Marlene."

Everyone stares at her in surprise except Tifa, Cloud, and Vincent.

"I'll tell you why I've changed, and the reason my eyes are mako blue," Marena says.

They all sit around the room and listen to Marena's story.

"My parents were strange people. The whole town hated them, and I hated the town for their hatefulness to my family. My mother was a beautiful and kind soul, and she was killed along with my father by SOLDIER. I was left to live alone and raise my brother, who was later killed by SOLDIER when I wasn't home. I killed those men and vowed to help save other children from losing their parents. One day, I caught the Geostigma disease and gave up SOLDIER to wander around to look for anything to help me.

"My parent's had been experimented on by the Shinra Company. Both my parents had been injected with Jenova cells, and they were already in love so Shinra used their love to make me and my brother. I was a successful creation, but my brother was a normal human. I could change my appearance to hide from SOLDIER, who was after me, and I was always changing, but they didn't know I could change until one day they caught me. I ran to go to my parents and found them dead, and my baby brother was crying in his crib. I was so happy he lived, so I took him and ran away. I stayed in my disguise to keep attention away from us. In this form I attract men easily, and I cause trouble for my friends and family. I vowed never to change, but I had no choice. I've decided to stay in my true form because I have nothing to be afraid of anymore. My entire bloodline is gone and all that is left is me, and I'm glad you have all accepted me into your family. Words could not express how grateful I am to you all," Marena explains.

Cloud stands up and they all look at him as he says, "You don't have to say a word, but please, tell us you will stay."

"Yeah," everyone echoes.

Marena smiles at them all and says, "Yes. I'll stay with you."

They clap and cheer, and Marena and Cloud stare at each other in a way only they knew. In that one moment, their connection seemed to grow and their friendship seemed to be deeper than they knew. They had helped each other recover from their misfortunes and their sorrow and pain. The scars on their hearts would forever be a reminder of what they sacrificed for their loved ones, and would always be looked back on as beautifully bitter.

* * *

Thanks everyone for reading After War! I appreciate your support and hope you stick around for the sequel! The first chapter of the sequel will be posted tonight! Thank you for your feedback!

~Everdark


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